Word to the Wise
Monday, December 30, 2024 - Dec. 30 - 6th Day in the Octave of Christmas
[1 John 2:12-17 and Luke 2:36-40]There was a prophetess, Anna, the daughter of Phanuel, of the tribe of Asher. She was advanced in years, having lived seven years with her husband after her marriage, and then as a widow until she was eighty-four. She never left the temple, but worshipped night and day with fasting and prayer. And coming forward at that very time, she gave thanks to God and spoke about the child to all who were awaiting the redemption of Jerusalem. [Luke]
The liturgical celebration and season of Christmas/Epiphany is like standing before a large tapestry that includes both the "infancy narratives" from the Gospels According to Matthew and Luke. It is like the way many of us set up a nativity scene with Baby Jesus, Mary, Joseph, shepherds, and Magi all together even though they appear at different points in time in the narratives. In the Gospel According to Luke, the story of Jesus' presentation in the temple is part of the narrative but it takes place in the temple in Jerusalem and not in Bethlehem. Furthermore, the figures of Simeon and Anna, celebrated usually in the feast of the Presentation (Feb. 2), are characters who represent many different facets of what the evangelist will preach in the gospel and in Acts of the Apostles! For those who want to dive deeper into the meanings of these two characters, Fr. Raymond Brown's THE BIRTH OF THE MESSIAH is a wonderful resource. For our purposes today, Anna (along with Simeon) responds to the question asked in the old Christmas carol: What Child is this?
Anna and Simeon and the shepherds all proclaim the birth of Jesus. They represent those for whom Jesus is born, and they speak out about him "to all who were awaiting the redemption of Jerusalem." They anticipate the event of Pentecost. They are among the poor and also the future disciples. We, too, are challenged to answer and proclaim the question in the carol: "What child is this?" AMEN